THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2008
San Diego Community Newspaper Group
www.SDNEWS.com Volume 13, Number 52
Cravens’ attorney claims self-defense Calls prosecution a ‘runaway train’ He [Kauanui] went BY NEAL PUTNAM | VILLAGE NEWS
Seth Cravens’ attorney told a jury in his murder trial Monday that he acted in selfdefense when he punched professional surfer Emery Kauanui Jr., and it was the fall to the pavement that cracked Kauanui’s skull that caused his death in front of his mother’s home in La Jolla. Attorney Mary Ellen Attridge has always claimed the actual offense should be involuntary manslaughter, a lesser offense that three others involved in the confrontation had pleaded guilty to involving the May 2007 death in La Jolla. But Attridge went farther than that by saying it “was not a homicide” and indirectly suggesting she would seek an acquittal.
down. You could hear the skull hitting the ground. PHILIP BALTAZAR WITNESS
“It is undisputed that this tragedy was unnecessary, senseless … it was not a murder. It was a case of selfdefense,” Attridge said. “This case is not a prosecution but a runaway train, because Mr. Cravens is not guilty.” “It began at a bar where Emery Kauanui was drinking heavily,” said Attridge, who stated that Kauanui’s blood/alcohol level was .17 percent at the hospital, which is SEE CRAVENS, Page 7
BETWEEN THE COVERS
Jewish Book Fair casts a wide net to attract varied audience
BAD HAIR DAY? Youngsters compete in a costume contest during the Oct. 25 Halloween Festival at La Jolla Recreation Center, 615 Prospect St. Costume choices include Spiderman and a werewolf (above), Sherlock Holmes and a mailbox (right). The annual event also featured games, refreshments and pony rides. VILLAGE NEWS | PAUL HANSEN
BY ALYSSA RAMOS | VILLAGE NEWS
The 14th annual San Diego Jewish Book Fair will kick off Friday, Oct. 31, and then resumes Nov. 6 through 13 at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, Jacobs Family Campus. “The biggest night will be when Christopher Hitchens and Rabbi David Wolpe are hashing it out,” said Dan Shapiro, director of marketing for the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture. “Hitchens, a well-known atheist, is known to be abrasive, and Wolpe’s written a lot of books, so it’s an interesting [match]. It’s a face-off of sorts.” This year’s biggest draw, Shapiro says, will occur during the fair’s final night, when Wolpe – author of “Why Faith Matters” – encounters journalist Hitchens – author of “God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.” The two will express their views, which are at polar opposites of the religious spectrum. “I don’t know if we’ve ever had a well-known atheist,” Shapiro
Prop C considers Mission Bay Park revenue BY SHANNON MULHALL | VILLAGE NEWS
Journalist Sheila Weller will talk about her book “Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon – And the Journey of a Generation” Nov. 6 as part of the San Diego Jewish Book Fair at the JCC, 4126 Executive Drive.
said. “And Hitchens also writes about politics. He’s generally more conservative than liberal.” The book fair offers hundreds of books and book-related events for Jewish and non-Jewish people, Shapiro said. Featured authors speak and sign books SEE BOOK FAIR, Page 4
How much of the revenue generated by Mission Bay Park should stay in the park and how much should go to the city? San Diegans will decide on Nov. 4 when they cast their vote for Proposition C. Proponents say the measure is necessary to complete the popular recreational area and uphold the original agreement between the city and San Diegans. Critics call the initiative a money grab that could undermine the city’s fiscal stability and hamstring park development. “The city has raided Mission Bay Park funds for far too long,” Councilman Kevin Faulconer said. “I saw that firsthand as chairman of the Mission Bay Park Committee.” The advisory board has struggled for years to fund the estimated $400 million in capital improvements called for in the Mission Bay Park Master Plan, a
blueprint for park development that City Council and the coastal commission approved in 1994. Currently, approximately 90 cents of every dollar generated by SeaWorld and other Mission Bay leaseholds goes to the city. If the proposed 30-year charter amendment passes, starting in July, $23 million of the roughly $28 million in lease revenues would continue to go to the city’s general fund. The remaining revenue – an estimated $5 million to $12 million annually – would go toward completing bicycle and pedestrian
trails, expanding wetlands, shoreline maintenance and other projects in the 4,235-acre park. An additional 25 percent of funds would go to Balboa and other regional parks, which could net $2 million to $4 million every year. After five years, the city’s cut of Mission Bay Park’s lease revenue would decrease from $23 million to $20 million. The reallocation of revenues is necessary to improve and maintain Mission Bay Park, Faulconer says. “The park has been neglected for too long. We must change that. It’s too important to citizens throughout San Diego.” Faulconer and Councilwoman Donna Frye were instrumental in getting Proposition C on the ballot. Mayor Jerry Sanders and the Sierra Club also support the measure. Frye has called the current fiscal arrangement between the city SEE PROP C, Page 5